How I Loved Cati

July 28, 2016

By Anonymous, Middletown, NY

Image Credit: Janessa B., Kannapolis, NC

"Cati was.. different. She was gorgeous, very intelligent, kind, but she was also bullied." Anna shook her, "hard to believe right? Her family was rich, but the way she dressed.. said otherwise. She wore this baggy pair of jeans that was always stained right by the left pocket with red. Paint, food, - blood? I could never figure out. She had different band tee shirts that she wore. Her favorite was a faded grey one, with 'Zepplin' written diagnollay in bold white font. "Everyday, she sat alone at the cafeteria table, nearest to the door as well as the trash can. That had great repercussions, seeing as she stank for the rest of the day. She ate her moist ham sandwich halfway before she threw it out. She had never, ever finished her sandwiches. When she was done, she uncapped the Arizona Fruit Punch bottle and took one sip. Then she'd open her book and read for the remaining lunch period. "I watched her from afar, admiring her beauty," Anna smiled fondly. "Her curly raven, black hair that past just below her shoulders, her long legs, pearly white smile, and her confidence; god, her confidence. Probably the most attractive thing about her." "When did you know she was the one?" Anna looked up and her eyes glazed over in memory. "July 8th, 1993. It was about two weeks after school ended and I was hanging out with a couple of friends at the park and she walked by. She sat across us, merely twenty feet away from where I sat and she pulled out a book. It was Stargirl.." Anna shook her head, "forever the bookworm." She sighed, "three girls strolled up to her from our high school - the ones that tortured the most. Anna gritted her teeth, "I hated them, with a passion. They knocked the book right out of Cati's hands and began taunting her, but Cati never even flinched. She raised her head up and uttered the words, "f*ck off." Anna let out a small chuckle, "I never imagined those foul words coming out her rosy lips, and I sat there, startled. Everyone was actually. Cati bent down to pick up her fallen book and walked away, her nose right back in it. "That was the day I knew I loved her. The next day, I asked her out. As expected it took a while for her to answer. It was bold of me, I never knew she was into girls from all the years stalking her. I could never tell who she was into, she hid that remarkably well." Anna looked to her left, where her girlfriend of over twenty years stood in front of the kitchen stirring a pot. Cati had aged well, her waist length, curly, raven black hair had a few strands of grey, her body still fit, and her mind still brilliant. Anna looked over at the young girl that sat across from her, her big brown eyes wide, and felt her pants pocket, making sure it was there. She smiled, "The year is 2016 and gay mariage has been made legal. I just hope your mother says yes again."

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